At a book signing for his recently released autobiography on Tuesday, Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim spoke about his life and Syracuse basketball. Boeheim spoke candidly with Orange fans, offering insight on this year’s team, the state of Syracuse basketball, and other topics you would expect a coach to engage fans with. He also, however, delivered an intriguing outlook on how much longer he will be sitting on the Syracuse bench.
“We are definitely near the end. When the end is I don’t know. I hope some day I will wake up and think it’s time! I have not yet had that morning, but I have woken up when some days I start thinking about it and I’m home for two days, and I have two twins who are 14, and a 16 year old, and I don’t think it’s time. Even if I might want it to be time, it’s not time yet.”
Jim Boeheim and Mike Krzyzewski Teamed Up to Win Another Gold Medal This Summer
(Photo: Raleigh News & Observer / Getty Images)
Boeheim made it clear that he will not be retiring in the immediate future, but he strongly suggests that he can see that day coming quickly. Boeheim has been the head coach of the Syracuse basketball team for 38 years, missing March Madness only seven times in that span and winning one National Championship in four Final Four appearances. His illustrious career has certainly earned him legendary status at Syracuse, and, whenever he decides to hang it up, it will most definitely be the end of an era. In his time at Syracuse, the head coach has won 948 games with a .750 lifetime winning percentage. And yes, while he can alienate rival fans (or possibly the entire ACC by the time he’s through with it), he is an absolutely beloved character among Orange faithful, somewhat akin to Mike Krzyzewski at Duke or Dean Smith at North Carolina.
Since his team lost to Michigan in the 2013 Final Four, speculation about Boeheim’s retirement has grown more noisy. In fact, one of the first questions Boeheim took at his postgame press conference after that loss involved his eventual curtain call. That heartbreak, combined with last year’s NCAA Tournament Third Round upset at the hands of Dayton and an ongoing NCAA investigation, has marked a frustrating few years for Boeheim. While he has been much more chipper of late, his passion and fury, as exhibited in last year’s loss at Cameron Indoor Stadium to Duke, are still very much on display. Boeheim turns 70 years old in two weeks; can a man that age continue to coach with such intensity?
Boeheim is currently the fourth oldest coach in NCAA basketball and the oldest in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Remember, this is a conference that features Krzyzewski (67), Florida State’s Leonard Hamilton (66), and Miami’s Jim Larranaga (65). All three of those coaches have recently proven successful despite their ages (Florida State won the ACC Tournament in 2012; Miami won it in 2013), but still, Boeheim has a few years on each. He is younger than SMU coach Larry Brown, who is rebuilding the Mustangs basketball program at the ripe old age of 74. The Mustangs didn’t quite make the NCAA Tournament after flirting with the bubble all last season, but Brown has succeeded in recruiting well and earning SMU a spot in the Preseason AP Top 25.
Boeheim enters this season with the AP #23 team in the nation, but finds himself with a less talented team than the one he had the last couple of years. Should he lead the Orange to another strong year, there’s no reason to believe he’s as near the end as he let on earlier this week. As long as Boeheim’s teams are in contention, you have to believe that he will continue to chase that elusive second National Championship ring. All bets are off if Syracuse struggles or if the NCAA comes down hard on the program, though. Enjoy him while you can, ACC fans; we don’t for how long we’ll have the curmudgeonly old coach around.